Here are some of the questions we are frequently asked by organisations who are considering outsourcing their exit interiews. These questions are specifically on exit interviews but the principles also apply to on-boarding and stay interviews. If you would like more information please feel free to call or email us. We will be only too happy to explore how we may be of assistance in helping you reduce your unwanted staff turnover.

Why interview people who have resigned? Isn't it too late?

How are outsourced interviews superior to in-house exit interviews?

Why are phone interviews superior to online surveys?

Won't HR "lose touch" with the business if we outsource our exit interviews?

Isn't it important that the Interviewer knows our business?

Why interview people who have resigned? Isn't it too late?

In most cases it's too late to retain the individuals who have already resigned. However these people are the most accurate source of information on why people leave your organisation - and how to prevent more staff from leaving. Satisfaction and engagement surveys of current staff are helpful in a number of ways but they are only mildly predictive of staff turnover. Rigorously collected exit interview data is the most accurate source of intelligence on how to keep people because it tells you why people DO leave, not why they MIGHT leave.

How are outsourced interviews superior to in-house exit interviews?

Only an external party can provide the assurance of 'safety' needed to receive honest, complete information. Our data shows that 25% of Departers feel anxious about providing honest feedback directly to their employer.

It saves HR a lot of time conducting exit interviews, transcribing data, producing and often re-producing reports. Talented HR people are more motivated by using their time to add value with good data rather than spending hours collecting it.

Departers perceive their organisations positively for having invested in a specialist external exit interview service. This is becoming increasingly important as organisations look to their alumni as a talent pool. See comments from our interviewees.

Why are phone interviews superior to online surveys?

Our experience has shown that the list of reasons for leaving initially offered by a departer is different to the final list of reasons in 72% of cases. It takes the intuition and skill of a live interviewer with business experience to tune into the non-verbal cues of what's said and not said, to create the rapport needed for open communication about difficult subjects and to ensure the story is consistent from beginning to end. This can simply not be codified into an online survey. If you want clear and accurate data then you need to have people talking to people.

Won't HR lose touch with the business if we outsource our exit interviews?

Feedback from The Interview Group's clients indicates that the opposite is true. HR becomes more 'in touch' with their internal client groups because they can see trends and dig deeper to understand fully what is really driving turnover. In addition, our Individual Exit Interview Reports provide much more and higher quality information than is usually collected via internal interviews.

Isn't it important that the Interviewer knows our business?

As long as the interviewer is an experienced business person (as ours are) who knows what, when and how to probe in an exit interview, the information gained is of high quality and relevance. The Interview Group's clients have remarked how impressed they are that the exit interviews reflect so accurately their business context.

What will our staff think about an external provider conducting their exit interview?

Feedback from departers indicates that they perceive the client organisation very positively for investing in a high quality exit interview service. Click on the link below to see some of the verbatim comments from previous departers about their exit interview experience with us (click here for comments).

If you'd like to know more click on the button below to download a free copy of our White Paper 'Endings Matter'.